The evening features a food tasting reception hosted by premier local culinary partners, a silent auction, and a program and award ceremony, followed by live music entertainment from “The Inspiration”. Proceeds benefit Center for the Pacific Asian Family (CPAF), a nonprofit whose mission is to build healthy and safe communities by addressing the root causes and the consequences of family violence and violence against women. CPAF is committed to meeting the specific cultural and language needs of Asian Pacific Islander (API) women and their families. The event’s Leadership Sponsors include Anthony Caminiti, Cathay Bank, East West Bank and Nossaman LLP.

General Admission ticket prices begin at $150 (Early Bird rate through August 22, while supplies last). Reserved seating tickets are available at $500. To purchase tickets for this year’s event, visit the CPAF ticket page. A complete list of sponsors and culinary partners is on the gala event page.

The gala’s theme, “Together We Rise”, celebrates the integration this year of CPAF and Asian Pacific Women’s Center (APWC), a nonprofit dedicated to providing a safe haven and support services for women and children who are survivors of domestic violence. CPAF and APWC share the same vision of an Asian and Pacific Islander community that is free from violence and both organizations provide services that are sensitive to the cultural and language needs of Asian and Pacific Islander survivors of violence and their families.

For information on how to become a sponsor, contact CPAF’s development team at development@cpaf.info or (323) 653-4045, ext. 334.

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About Center for the Pacific Asian Family (CPAF)

Founded in 1978, CPAF established the first multi-lingual and multi-cultural hotline, emergency shelter, and transitional housing in the United States to specialize in serving Asian and Pacific Islander (API) survivors of domestic and sexual violence. Today, CPAF responds to thousands of crisis calls on its 24-hour hotline in 30 API languages and shelters hundreds of survivors and children, in addition to providing community prevention programs. For more information about CPAF, visit www.NurturingChange.org or call 1-800-339-3940.

The event will be held at the Wallis Annenberg Building at the California Science Center in the heart of Downtown Los Angeles.

In honor of its 20th anniversary, Project by Project is inviting all past beneficiary partners to join their organization in continuing to advance awareness of important social issues in the Los Angeles Asian and Pacific Islander community.

Approximately 50 restaurants and beverage purveyors from around Southern California will be in attendance and supporting the cause. A full list of vendors can be found on the event page.

Past Plate by Plate events have featured a non-profit organization based on a theme or issue that addresses current needs in the Asian American community. CPAF was selected as a partner in 2015 to address housing.

CPAF congratulates Project by Project on 20 years of developing leaders through innovative philanthropy and looks forward to attending the event in August.

Domestic violence can be a difficult subject to talk about when you don’t know the audience very well. But what if I showed you a story of someone who looks like you or someone you love?

Visual storytelling can be a powerful way to break through some barriers that currently exist in many communities and in particular API communities when it comes to talking about domestic violence or sexual assault (DV/SA).

CPAF’s hope is to produce a collection of stories featuring survivors from various Asian and Pacific Islander (API) backgrounds. We plan to share these stories with the hope that the audience can identify with the survivor and develop a stronger personal conviction to help end DV/SA in their community. We also hope the videos will serve as empowering tools for other survivors, leading them to seek help or to share their personal journeys as well.

We are currently seeking API survivors to be featured for the upcoming Survivor Series episodes. Please contact us if you feel led to share your story with others in this way.

The Center for the Pacific Asian Family (CPAF) helped launch a pilot training series to help strengthen cultural responsiveness practices across California. As an organization that has been dedicated to helping Asian and Pacific Islander survivors facing cultural and linguistic barriers, it was a fitting task for CPAF to partner with other agencies in a joint mission to eliminate all forms of violence.

Six organizations met in January 2017 to collaborate on an unprecedented model of learning. Since then, the group has been traveling across the state to bring together service providers in an effort to increase access to victim services. Thisproject, known as the MYLAR (Multi-Year Language Access Resources) Collaborative, is being led by My Sister’s House and Everyday Impact Consulting. Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence (API-GBV), Center for the Pacific Asian Family (CPAF), Korean American Family Services (KFAM) and Mujeres Unidas y Activas (MUA) round out the group.

This exercise is called Blanketed By Blame and is designed to help participants see the structures that can cause harm and how they can be different

The training location alternates each month from NorCal to SoCal to cities in between. Adopting a diversity framework, enhancing leadership/budget strategies, and increasing language access at each workplace are examples of what participants learn in reference to serving victims of crime more effectively throughout the state.

The MYLAR training includes many styles of learning. Session three is a panel discussion on budgeting and staffing for cultural responsiveness

The training is free and open to any organization or government/social service agency that iswilling to reflect on its current practices and be open to making necessary improvements to better serve its population. Post-training technical assistance can also be provided.

Nina, on the left, and her friend Therese were a part of CPAF’s API Youth Forum in 2016

I learned more than an average teenager would about domestic violence and sexual assault as one of CPAF’s Youth Leadership pilot program participants. I took CPAF’s 65-hour training and volunteered last two summers at CPAF’s emergency and transitional shelters. As I’m preparing to go to college, I became increasingly aware of how prevalent sexual assault is across the country. Studies show that one in five women are sexually assaulted during college, which means that I or a friend will become a target too.

I began researching how different universities respond to sexual violence, and I wanted to share these resources with those who may also be looking for a safe campus to call their home-away-from home for the next few years.

Who to ask: These groups and organizations should be most knowledgeable on this topic.

Student Advocacy Groups or Student Peer Counselors: Many colleges have them, and they should be able to provide the most accurate information on how the administration treats the students who are sexually assaulted, and the students who assaulted them.

Title IX Officers/Coordinators: Since 2011, colleges are required to have a Title IX Officer/Coordinator who takes reports, investigates allegations, and adjudicates sexual assault cases. They also educate the campus community about sexual assault via prevention programs.

Counseling/Health/Violence Prevention Center: Most colleges will have one or more of these.

What to ask: These are some basic questions students and parents can ask when visiting campuses.

Are there any trainings during orientation that address sexual assault awareness or prevention?

How does this school react to sexual assault cases?

How does this campus support victims of sexual assault?

Are there policies that hold sexual assault perpetrators accountable?

Has this campus ever been investigated for violating Title IX?

Can you tell me how to access your school’s Clery Report? (The Clery Act is a federal law requiring all colleges participating in federal student aid programs to disclose crime statistics and summaries of security policies every year.)

Keep in mind:

Colleges don’t want to be known for having high levels of sexual assault, so they may underreport. In these cases, do your own research (search local news reports, police logs, etc.)

Special thanks to Daren Mooko, the Title IX Coordinator at Pomona College, for his guidance.

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and CPAF’s Volunteer Coordinator Elizabeth Denny took this picture of the Clothesline Project while tabling at UCLA

One of the perks of working for CPAF is getting to know our corporate donors and volunteers.

This month, I had the pleasure of being a guest at Bank of America (BofA)’s Lunar New Year festivities at the 888 Seafood Restaurant in Rosemead. CPAF received a grant of $10,000 from BofA in December 2016, and we very much value Bank of America as a community partner.

It was inspiring to see the hundreds of BofA’s employees who are a part of the Asian Leadership Network. The celebration included an eight-course meal and a lion dance performance. But for me, the main highlight of the evening was hearing the stories of two accomplished men in the world of finance- Gil Tong, a Resident Director at Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, and Johnny Montes, Senior Vice President and Area Executive for Bank of America.

Gil Tong and Johnny Montes, featured speakers at Bank of America’s Lunar New Year Banquet

I think the reason why these men moved me is because it is rare for Asian men like Tong to speak so vulnerably about his humble beginnings. It was also endearing to hear a top executive like Montes talk about how important it is to prioritize his wife’s yoga nights and not miss important family obligations no matter how busy you may be in the corporate world.

Gil Tong, Resident Director at Merrill Lynch Wealth Management

Gil Tong spoke about different perspectives on ‘Asian integration.’ Tong shared a story about immigrating to the United States as a child and growing up in Chinatown. Back then he thought of integration as getting a shot to compete in America. Years later, when he made his way into the finance world, he began seeing integration from a different light. He noted that Chinese and Korean investors acquired much of Los Angeles’ real estate. He said there were $45 billion in acquisition from Chinese investors in America last year, which was more than twice as much as the year before. “If you have an Asia outside of Asia, it is right here,” said Tong referencing Southern California. Now, Tong said ‘Asian integration’ was no longer about fitting in. It was about getting a chance to stand out.

Johnny Montes, Senior Vice President and Area Executive for Bank of America

Johnny Montes, an area executive for Bank of America, addressed ‘work life balance’ or the lack thereof in this world. He preferred to use the phrase ‘work life harmony,’ saying it was not only helping in maintaining a successful career but also a healthy family life. Three tips I picked up from his speech are as follows:

Plan – what is important to you? Ex. Montes’ family planned the following- him: kickboxing on Tuesdays; his wife: yoga on Wednesdays; child: family night on Fridays

Communicate- what are your needs and wants? Don’t assume others will or should know.

Make it count- be present. At home, put work away. Constantly re-evaluate your overall life and re-balance as needed.

Montes ended his speech with a one year rule – what will you remember one year from now? He encouraged asking this questions when deciding between a family and a work obligation.

This particular night was the first time I saw a large corporation like Bank of America dedicate so many resources and time to promote the Asian heritage. Through entertainment, food, and culturally sensitive messages, it was a time of reflection for many in attendance as we celebrated Lunar New Year.

Every year, a group of highly qualified graduates of Chulalongkorn University in Thailand spend a year living and teaching in Los Angeles. These young men and women teach Thai language, traditional Thai Music and dance to children at the Wat Thai L.A Buddhist Temple. This is a year where the recent grads get a taste of a new culture during their yearlong residency in L.A. They have an opportunity to not only teach, but also improve their own English skills. CPAF’s partnership with Thai Community Development Center (Thai CDC) allowed us to enter the temple grounds to provide an educational workshop for the teachers about CPAF services.

Teachers from Wat Thai L.A. Learn about CPAF

Thai CDC’s Social Service Coordinator Wanda Pathomrit engaged her audience with an introduction to CPAF in Thai and translated our greetings. We covered a lot of topics including identifying sexual assault situations that could occur at the Thai school temple program. We talked about differences in American and Thai cultures as well as family dynamics and pressures. We want to empower the teachers to be advocates for their students and the families they work with at Wat Thai.

At the end of our meeting, the students invited Wanda back to talk more in-depth about CPAF’s missions and services. We are excited about making new friendships and relationships with the Thai community through this unique opportunity.

January is Human Trafficking Awareness and Prevention Month. Human trafficking is considered to be the fastest growing criminal enterprise in the world. It is estimated to be a $150 billion industry, according to the International Labor Organization (2014). Almost 800,000 victims are trafficked through international borders annually, and Asians and Pacific Islanders (APIs) make up the largest group of people trafficked into the United States, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Los Angeles is a top point-of-entry location due to its diverse communities, proximity to international borders and ports, as well as its significant immigrant population. CPAF has dealt primarily with international trafficking situations and has seen culturally sensitive trends while assisting survivors of human trafficking. Here are some facts we gathered while helping our survivors:

1. Lack of knowledge: Many human trafficking victims don’t know that they are victims. Manipulation, intimidation and fear often layer their situations, confusing them. Education about trafficking helps them to gain insight into what has happened in their lives.2. Fear: International trafficking victims often fear deportation and experience a lack of safety. Trafficking perpetrators can harm the victims’ and their families anywhere, including in their home countries.3. Love: Intimate partners can force and/or groom an individual into trafficking, blurring lines to include domestic violence/sexual assault.4. Shame: Trafficked individuals may feel trapped and uncertain of how to pay off their debt to their traffickers. This can create a sense of isolation and an immense feeling of guilt for being in such a position. These circumstances can become barriers in reaching out to their family/friends or asking for help.5. Control: Traffickers work in trafficking “rings/gangs” to tighten their control and power over those they traffic. This creates a real sense of danger and forces a trafficking survivor to perform any task given all for the sake of staying alive.

During the month of January, our media partner LA 18 featured CPAF to talk about human trafficking. Links to the interviews will be added as they are provided.

LA 18’s Juliette Zhuo featured CPAF Volunteer Kat Sea on her show to talk about human trafficking

Can you help us transform our new Community Center into a warm and welcoming atmosphere?

We are in need of matching furniture, signage, and paintings or other artwork, especially in the common areas that first greet our survivors and visitors.

This is a safe space for some of our survivors to come in for counseling and healing workshops. It is also a place where our advocates take hotline calls and our staff prepare ways to better serve our communities in Southern California and beyond.

We could use volunteers with an artistic background to help us settle into our new home. We would also appreciate corporate donors who may have donations that fit our needs.

Please email volunteer@cpaf.info if you have any ideas on beautifying our new space, or if you have items you’re interested in donating.